A Fragmentary Ghost
by Ejes
Summary: Since she was saved from the Realm of Darkness, Aqua is haunted by the ghost of a former foe. Why is he here? Was there any way to get rid of him for good?
1. Aqua

**_Back with another story of these two babies! Enjoy~  
Disclaimer: meh, you know I don't own it._**

* * *

"Hey, Aqua, do you want to-"

"How many times will I have to tell you to leave me alone before you actually do?"

Sora froze by the door. Aqua was reading a book on the couch, and her poisonous snarl surprised him.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…"

She gasped, realising he was there. "Oh, no, Sora, not you! Excuse me, I just wasn't talking to you."

Sora scanned the room. There wasn't anybody else here. Just Aqua and him. She noticed his glance and smiled. "I was just… Reading out loud?"

She didn't sound pretty convincing, but that was the best excuse she could come up with. Sora nodded, accepting it.

"We are leaving for Olympus in twenty minutes. Do you want to come?"

"Sure, I'd love to."

"Great! Meet us in the hall when you're ready." The boy smiled at her and closed the door.

"Phew, that was close! Just a little more and he would have thought you were crazy. Which you are, to be fair."

Aqua darted a furious glare at the boy leaning against the wall behind the door.

"Leave me alone, Vanitas. I don't need your comments to ruin my life."

"Well, you know, I wouldn't be haunting you if you didn't _literally_ ruined my life."

She put her hands on her ears, shutting her eyes really tight. "You are not real. You are not real. You are not real."

"Exactly!" He laughed. "Isn't that wonderful? I'm just a product of your imagination. Meaning that no matter what you do, you will still hear my voice. You, and nobody else. Until they all realize you have gone insane and all leave you behind."

Aqua felt sick. Since that day Riku and Mickey saved her from the Realm of Darkness, two weeks ago, Vanitas had been following her everywhere. A ghost, an hallucination, all she knew was that no one else could see him, could hear him, and he wasn't exactly of the best company. Always making fun of her, teasing her or reminding us of her past mistakes, of her painful memories. Opening up any wound that would start to heal. If he was a product of her mind, she wondered why exactly she was punishing herself that much.

She didn't tell anyone, of course. Not even Master Yen Sid. What would be the point? " _Hey, I think the Realm of Darkness messed so badly with my mind that I now am stalked by a former opponent"_? They couldn't do anything for her. All she had to do was to find out why he was haunting her, and make him disappear. Find out what was wrong with her.

* * *

"Olympus, here we are!" Sora cheered, almost running out of the Gummi ship.

"Urgh, there's so much light here. It's blinding me."

"If only it could make you shut up." Whispered Aqua to her ghost. His mask was hiding his face, and she was glad it did. The only look she ever had of what could be under that helmet of his… She'd rather never see Ventus's face like this again.

"Did you say something, Aqua?" Riku asked, looking at her with a frown.

"I said it's been a while since I came here."

"So you've been here before?" Sora's eyes were sparkling, and Aqua chuckled.

"Yes. I was looking for Terra, and I entered these games… I was the champion of one of the branches, and Terra apparently was the champion of the second one."

"Tch. Show off."

"We were supposed to fight to know who would be the grand champion," continued Aqua, ignoring Vanitas's intervention, "but in the end Terra was already gone, so we never did."

"That's so cool!" said Sora with a big grin. "I don't want to boast or anything, but I've won every single one of the Coliseum trophies. Several times."

"You're definitely boasting." Chuckled Riku. "Come on, we were here to check if everything was alright."

"Oh, I wish I could throw a few Unversed here and there. They made your Tournament really fun, didn't they, Aqua? Don't you lie, you had fun here."

She gritted her teeth but remained silent. There would be no point in answering, and the others wouldn't ignore her talking to herself forever.

"Sora, what a surprise! And you are… No, you can't be! Aqua?"

She smiled at Hercules. "It has been a while."

"You haven't changed at all!" The man was staring at her in awe, and she couldn't help but laughing.

"I wish I could say the same about you, but… It looks like your training worked well. I'm glad."

"He's right, though. For a woman almost in her thirties, you still look like a baby." She quickly shot a cold glare at Vanitas before smiling back at Hercules. "How are you doing? Is Zack still around?" She looked around with a frown. "Is _Phil_ still around?"

If she would have gladly met the other hero in training (was he now as tall and strong as Hercules?), she didn't mind not seeing the satyr anywhere. His attitude towards her creeped her out.

"Afraid that little satyr would flirt with you again? No worries, I'm sure you're too old for him now."

"Zack? I hoped you'd know more than I do. He left soon after you, saying that becoming a hero took more than just physical strength, and that he would train somewhere else. I've had no news since then."

"Oh. I see."

"He's probably dead by now, you know. Something over dramatic, betrayed by his kin, his blood mixing with the rain on the dirt…"

Aqua clenched her fists and took a deep breath in. Ignoring Vanitas was much harder than she thought.

"Everything okay?" Asked Riku, putting a hand on her shoulder, concerned. Vanitas cackled childishly.

"Yes, yes, I'm fine. I just hoped… I'd see Zack. I hope he's alright."

"If he trained with Phil, there's no way he wouldn't be fine!" grinned Sora. "So now, tell me, Herc, anything weird to report lately?"

"Well, there are these monsters who still show up occasionally, but nothing alarming. Phil is using them as training material for the new recruits. Would you like a bit of training destroying them?"

"When you think of it, Heartless are born from the heart of people, right? Don't you think it's ironic that you spend your days smashing these hearts, and that there even are _games_ where you have to destroy them?" Even without seeing his face, Aqua could guess his smirk. She wanted to punch him, but she doubted it would have much effect. She never tried touching him, yet she guessed she would just go through him. He wasn't real anyway.

"Not today, I'm afraid." Politely declined Aqua, under Sora's and Riku's frown. They probably wanted to have a bit of fun, and she felt guilty for taking that away from them - but she couldn't get Vanitas's words out of her head. _They used to be people, having fun destroying them is wrong. Even if we are setting their hearts free._

"Let's go home for today, okay?" She kindly asked, smiling at her friends. With a sigh and a disappointed look, they agreed. Vanitas scoffed but didn't say a thing.

* * *

"Why do you think you are here?"

It was the middle of the night, but she couldn't sleep. She had been staring at the ceiling for an hour now, and Vanitas was crouching on the armchair. She was concerned about his shoes on the furniture, but had to remember he wasn't real and he couldn't damage it.

"What, do you dislike my presence?"

"I do, but that's not the question. It feels like you are here for a reason. My heart wants me to understand something, but I fail to see what it could be. Any idea?"

He remained silent for a moment, which was unusual. But after a while, he sighed and answer.

"I have no idea. I'm not even sure how I am able to think, if I am just an illusion of some kind. All I could say, you would already know it, right? Don't bother asking me."

She fell silent. He was right. How could he answer when he was just an hallucination? But as she was about to turn back and try to sleep, she heard him chuckle.

"Anything funny?"

"Nothing you would find interesting."

"Come on, share that with me. I'm curious about what _you_ think fun is."

He took a deep breath in (did he really need to breathe?) before answering.

"It's nothing funny, really. It's the sweet irony of my existence."

"What do you mean?"

"All my life, I've been nothing but Ventus's other half. He's never been called Vanitas's other half, you know. He was the original, I was the leftover. And now that he's gone… That _we_ are gone, I'm still nothing but an hallucination from your brain. I guess I've never been meant to be my own independent person."

Aqua stared at the ceiling in silence. "That's sad."

"Is it? It's just your brain that's making me pitiful. If you remembered me correctly, you wouldn't even have thought a single second that I had a sad life."

"I guess you're right. You've always been a freak, after all. Good night, Vanitas."

She heard him chuckle once again. "Yeah. Good night, Aqua."

* * *

She didn't sleep well. She emerged from a very dark nightmare, her bed a pool of sweat. But, at least, that nightmare helped her understanding what was wrong with her. She finally understood what her heart had been trying to tell her.

"We're headed for this new world today." Offered Sora. "It's called Corona. Will you join us?"

"Sorry, I have plans of my own for today." She smiled politely.

"Plans of your own? Don't you need friends to make plans?" scoffed Vanitas, appearing out of nowhere, and sitting right next to Sora. Of course, the teenager had no idea she was seeing someone next to him, so she did her best not to look at what was supposed to be an empty seat.

"Okay then! If you need anything, Kairi and Lea must be around training. See you later!"

"So, what's this plan of yours?" Vanitas asked once Sora was gone. "Unless you just wanted to get rid of him? I could get it, you know. He's pretty annoying."

"I would chose his company over yours anytime, you know." Aqua sighed, finishing her breakfast. "And you will soon see what these plans are, anyway."

After quickly washing up, she put her shoes on and left the Castle. They went through what used to be the main place, and she stopped, thoughtful.

"Tell me, Vanitas? Back then, when we fought, right here… I tried to take your mask off. Why did you stop me so quickly?"

He chuckled. "Well, if you had seen how good I looked, you would have fallen for me, of course."

She smiled, another theory in her mind. "Unless you had Terra's face, I doubt that would have happened."

She started walking again, but it took him a few seconds before he followed her. "Wait a minute. Wasn't that a confession? So you really had a crush on him?"

"Does it matter now? Oh, shut up now, there are people."

"You're the one who needs to shut up, not me, remember?"

She rolled her eyes before gently knocked on a massive wooden door. An old man with a very long beard opened.

"You know, you should be careful of old men with beard. The last one I met wasn't a nice fella."

"Hello, Merlin." She spoke loud enough to cover Vanitas's voice, even though she was the only one who could hear it. "I hope I'm not disturbing you."

"Oh, hello there, young one! We were just about to have tea. Would you like to join us?"

"I would love to, but I'm afraid I come for more serious matters. Is Cid here?"

The old magician let her in. The pilot looked relieved to see her, sitting at the table with a cup of tea in front of him.

"Ah, Aqua! How can I help you? If there's anything, _anything_ , please tell me."

She smiled. "Actually, I was wondering if you would mind taking me to another world today. Sora has taken the Gummi ship, so I thought that perhaps…"

"Gladly." Cid had almost jumped out of his chair. "I'm afraid the tea will have to wait, Merlin! I can't let that young woman in distress. Know what? Don't wait for me. Have the tea without me, it's okay, I won't blame you!"

He pushed Aqua outside and slammed the door behind them before Merlin even had time to speak.

"You really are my saviour. Five more minutes with him and I would have gone crazy. Do you know what it's like, talking to someone so stubborn he won't listen to you?"

"Tell me about it." Aqua said, sliding a glance to Vanitas. The boy gladly flipped her off. She rolled her eyes once again.

"So you want a ride in the Highwind? Where are we going?"

"That, I would like to know too." Vanitas sighed. Aqua took out of her pouch a piece of paper and gave it to Cid.

"These are the coordinates. And do you think you could get me that other thing too?"

Cid frowned as he looked at the paper, but said nothing. Aqua walked to his spaceship, where he joined her five minutes later, giving her a box. "What you asked."

* * *

She was silent for the whole flight. Vanitas tried to talk to her several times, often with provocations, but she ignored him all along.

"We're getting closer!" Announced Cid, and Aqua closed her eyes. What she couldn't see, she supposed Vanitas couldn't either.

"Oh I know, I know! This is a surprise party! My birthday surprise party! Am I right?"

"It can be dangerous out there, missy. You sure you want to go alone?"

She summoned her Keyblade and stared at Cid. "Don't worry, I can take care of myself."

Cid scoffed and opened the gate. "I won't move until I'm forced to, and nothing could force me to move that baby. Take your time, whatever business you have here, I'll be there when you come back."

"Thanks a lot, Cid. I shouldn't be too long."

She took a deep breath and exited the airship. Vanitas gasped.

"Why are we _here_? Out of all the places in the universe, who could you possibly expect to meet here?" Then, after thinking a bit, he added. "You're not planning to kill yourself, are you? See, even though my existence is fake, I still kind of enjoy it. If you die, I'll return to nothingness."

She shook her head, sadly smiling. "I'm not planning to die. I think I just know what my heart wanted me to do, and I am following it."

He crossed his arms, but she didn't add anything else. Instead, they just walked, and walked again, until a very familiar place.

The Keyblade Graveyard. And the exact place where Aqua and Vanitas's final fight happened.

Aqua kneeled to the ground and opened the box Cid had given her. She took out of it a bouquet of flowers and put it on the ground. She lowered her head, staring at her knees.

"Aqua? What are you doing?"

"Never once have I regarded you as a real _someone_. You were a monster trying to hurt my friends and me. It was easier this way, I guess. No second thoughts when it comes to killing monsters, I've been trained for that my whole life."

She raised her head, looking at him, and tears were prickling her eyes.

"But I guess that deep down, I knew. You were born from Ventus's heart. You were just like him. You were a child. And yet, I destroyed you… No. I killed you. I think that's why you are haunting me."

Her voice was trembling, but she refused to stop talking.

"Talking with you helped me understand. When you said that Heartless carried a heart, and yet we found it _fun_ to destroy them. And when you said you never had a proper existence. I've never thought you might want an existence of your own, because I never thought of you as a _human being_." She barely stopped a sob, and there was no stopping the tears now. But she wasn't completely done either.

"That's why I came here. I've come to beg forgiveness. I have taken the life of someone who was just lost. Instead of helping him, I rejected him. I don't know if I can do anything to atone for that, I just…" She broke down, her forehead on the dusty ground.

"I think I've messed up your life quite a lot too. Let's call it even."

She heard soft steps sounds behind her. But she was prostrated to the ground, crying her soul out, and she didn't want to hear what an hallucination made from her heart had to tell her. After all, wouldn't it just tell her the words she wanted to hear?

"However… Lilies? I would have rather had poppies. Or dandelions. Something that don't die that easily." She heard him pick up the flowers and scoff, before throwing himself sitting on the ground. At first, she didn't react, until she realised… He _picked up_ the flowers? How so? She finally lifted her puffy red eyes to him.

There was something different than the usual hallucination. Something she couldn't just point out. He tapped his coat to take the dust away. She frowned. A coat?

"Hello Aqua."

She sat back on her knees, and carefully reached out for him. When her hand _touched_ his shoulder, she gasped and quickly folded her arm back. She could touch him. He was there. He was real.

"Va-Vanitas? Is that really…"

"Yup. Safe and sound. I lived, bitch." But his last words lacked of venom, as if it was more of a joke than an actual insult.

"And I heard that cute and cheesy speech of yours… Did you mean it? Do you really want forgiveness?"

She stared at him - which led to staring at her sorrowful face in the reflection of his helmet.

"More than anything."

He scoffed, before freezing and glancing behind him. "I know, I know, I will say it!" Who was he talking to? There was no one.

"You see, I, uh… I think I'm looking for the same thing as you. Forgiveness."

"What?" She heard him right, but somehow, his words made no sense. Was he really Vanitas? Wasn't he just another illusion? Perhaps she was suffering of a heat stroke, and this was all another hallucination.

He sighed. "I've ruined your lives, because I had no other option. Because I've never been told right from wrong. Because the old fart told me that I would be free. But now… I guess I'm… Sorry? I've seen that trusting him didn't bring me anything good." He took a deep breath in. "Aqua, I'm sorry for all that I did. Do you think you can forgive me? And no matter your answer, know that I have long forgotten that sordid murder thing. I'm alive, after all, am I not?"

She threw her arms around him, and he stiffened. It was probably the first hug he ever received.

"I've never been good at staying angry at someone anyway. We've both been pawns in a game we couldn't control, haven't we?"

He carefully closed his arms around her. "I guess we have. And I think we still are."

She heard a chuckle, but that didn't come from him. It came from the _other_ him, the hallucination, standing right behind them. He gave Aqua a thumbs up.

"You know what? I don't think I was here out of your culpability. I think that the day you destroyed me… him, a fragment of his heart found its way to yours. But now that you found him, I can go back." He slowly faded away, and Aqua felt a strange emptiness, followed by a warmth in her heart.

"I suppose that doesn't make us friends?" She softly asked, her chin resting on his shoulder. He scoffed.

"I don't think so. See the coat? I'm still part of the bad guys. But this time, my objective is the same as yours. I'm just going to make sure they _never_ find Ventus."

She smiled. "Your other half." She heard him gasp.

"That's the first time… Someone acknowledges him as a part of me, and not the opposite."

"I think you both are distinct persons. He's my friend, and you are my…"

"Enemy?"

"Rival."

He chuckled, and so did she. "That's fine with me. I have to go now. See you around… Rival. And don't you go haunting me again."

"Only if _you_ leave me alone, Rival."

She smiled and she knew that under his helmet, he did too.

* * *

 _ **There will be a second chapter, telling Vanitas's story! I hope you enjoyed this first part. I'd like to write some more (actual) VanQua, but I'm lacking inspiration (and have lotsof stuff to write). Hopefully I'll find some inspiration soon!  
**_

 _ **I'd love him to get some kind of redemption in KH3, as long as it is a good one. It's totally fine if he remains a sassy villain, though!**_

 _ **Also, I wasn't planning to add any swearing in there (I don't use much swearing in my fics), but I love the "I lived, bitch" meme too much, sorry about that XD**_


	2. Vanitas

**_Here comes the second part : Vanitas's story._**

* * *

"Another nightmare?"

"Shut up."

"It's the fifth this week. And we're only Tuesday."

"I said shut up!"

He threw his lamp at her - and let a couple of Floods out of frustration when the lamp went right through her and crashed into the wall.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Why would I want to talk about it, especially with _you_?" He usually wasn't that aggressive towards her, using sarcasm over violence, but these dreams were starting to wear him out.

"Well, I think it could help you… With that." In a dismissive gesture, she indicated all the Unversed that were crawling in the room. The two Floods. And many, _many_ Scrappers.

"They represent Fear, don't they? If there are so many, it must have been a terrifying dream."

"Yeah, I dreamt that when I'd wake up, you'd still be there, staring at me while I sleep. Never thought you would be a creepy stalker."

"I'm only what you think I am."

He sighed and buried his head into the pillow, screaming. He had been back for a while now. At first, it had been peaceful. Spreading Unversed on every world, the routine. But then, _she_ appeared two weeks ago, and had not left him since then. She wasn't real, which was worse, because no one else could see her. Could hear her. And she was exactly as he remembered: nosy, with a sickening kindness at some times, full of spit at other times.

"Why do you care about helping me? The real Aqua wouldn't have cared. She _didn't_ care."

"Then maybe I care because you want me too? That's just a thought, though. I don't know. But since no matter what, I'll have to stay with you, I can at least show some occasional concern."

"Shut up.' He repeated, facing away from her. She sighed. "As you wish. But I really think this could help you sleep better."

He shrugged. He didn't need the help of a stupid ghost from his past. So instead, he just closed his eyes, welcoming the sixth nightmare of the week.

* * *

It wasn't as much of a nightmare as it was flashes of memories. Memories of a long gone past. Memories of a past not long gone enough. The slow agony of his birth. The memory of every Unversed created. The pain of every Unversed destroyed. The suffering that followed every failure. The humiliation that followed every success. The cold feeling of life leaving his body. The loneliness of being rejected by the heart he was once a part of. The haunting feeling of two words played in repeat in his head. _You freak_. Words that were true. Words that shouldn't have bothered him. And yet, words that never left him.

Why, of all people, would _she_ be the one haunting him? Her, and not Ventus? That was an easy question. Because she had been haunting him long before. Her words had stabbed his cold, half-heart even more painfully than her blade the day she killed him. And every night since he came back, he would remember that pain almost every time he closed his eyes.

* * *

When he woke up again, she was curled in a ball on the end of the bed. Was she sleeping? He doubted a ghost needed to sleep.

"Aqua?"

"Yes?" So she wasn't sleeping. That made sense. She still didn't move, though, facing away from him.

"What happened two weeks ago?"

She finally turned, looking at him. "What do you mean?"

"Why did you appear, all of a sudden? They brought me back a while ago, and yet you weren't there at first. What happened?"

She stared at the ceiling. "I don't know. All of a sudden, I was there, that's all I know."

"What happened to you? If you're a ghost, does that mean you're dead?"

She shrugged. "Maybe I died two weeks ago and decided to ruin the rest of your existence?"

He frowned. "But if you died two weeks ago, you would have been… Around thirty, right? You look exactly as in my memories."

"Perhaps you only see me as you remember me. Or maybe I'm not dead, and I'm not a ghost. I don't know."

He smirked. "Maybe you're an advanced Unversed? Like, a talking one."

"Ew, I hope not!" Disgust was painted on her face. "And that's ridiculous. No one can see me. And you can't destroy me." She looked relieved. "I'm not one of your gross creatures!"

He furrowed his brows. "Gross? Have you ever really looked at them?" It didn't require much effort to summon a Hareraiser. _Self-consciousness_. It was even easier than usual, he noted. The creature hopped right in front of Aqua.

"Look at it carefully and tell me again that it is gross."

Aqua sighed. "As you wish. It is…" But her eyes really stopped on the creature, and she didn't finish her sentence. Instead, she even patted its head. Of course, since she wasn't real, she couldn't touch it for real, but the creature being connected to Vanitas's emotion, it apparently could see her anyway, and it purred. "Okay. This one isn't that gross." A mandrake ( _shame_ ) squealed at her feet, and she sighed. "Fine, fine, I get it. They aren't all gross. And some of them are cute. Happy?"

He absorbed the Unversed back, wincing at all the Negativity coming back to him. "That's the thing, Aqua. I'm never happy."

* * *

"You must like it here."

"I know exactly what you are implying, and I dislike it." She smiled, proud of her comment, while he put his hands on his pockets and kept on walking. They were in Monstropolis - the world of Monsters. And her implying that this was where he belonged… Stinged a little. Just a little.

"So what do these monsters do here, anyway?" She asked, looking around. They were in a kind of factory, with monsters guarding doors. Occasionally, another monster came out of wherever the door led to, and they would change the door before going back in. It looked like they were filling some kind of cannisters.

"No idea." Vanitas confessed. "But this is the perfect place to spread some of my very own monsters."

Aqua shivered. "Do you really have to? Can't you just go back and pretend you did? These people could get hurt."

He glared at her. "Do you really think I care about that?" And with a smirk (that his helmet hid), he released a wide variety of Unversed - mostly Hareraisers, Mandrakes and Archravens ( _jealousy_ ). At first, the monsters (this world's inhabitants) seemed unfazed by the creatures, which got Aqua to laugh as Vanitas released some more Flood.

"You were right, they are cute after all. Did you expect something cute to scare them?"

He sighed and released some Bruisers. And, after a while, all the monsters finally understood the danger and started running away, screaming.

"Now, now, let's see what is hiding behind these doors." Vanitas walked to a door, a pretty green door with dinosaurs stickers on it, and he kicked it open.

There was a little boy in a bed, his hazel eyes wide open, staring at the door as if expecting something great to happen. Except it wasn't anything great. It was Vanitas. He prepared himself to summon some Floods. If his theory was correct, he could spread his creatures through the room door (not the one they came from, the other one), and then go back, destroy the door, and ensure no one could destroy his pets.

"Vanitas, no!" Aqua ran in front of him, her arms wide open.

"What are you doing, stupid?"

"This is a child, Vanitas. A _child_. Look at him. You can't hurt him. He's almost still a baby!"

"Move."

"No!" Her eyes were a balance of begging and determination. He remembered her looking this fierce. "Look at him again, and tell me he deserves it."

He clicked his tongue, frustrated she would mimic him. "You want me to tell you that? Very well." He stared at the kid, pretty determined to set his Unversed free anyway. But when he met these hazel eyes… Memories buried deep inside him poured all over his brain. He'd been a child, too. Terrified of the monster in the closet. And he'd cry, and cry again, until someone turned the light on, gave him a hug.

 _That must have been Ventus's side of heart. Weak, scared._

"Don't hurt him. I beg you."

He shot a deadly glare at her. "I need to find out how to exorcise you quickly. I hate that you're messing with my mind."

She sighed as he turned away, not sparing a single more glance to the kid, who silently stared at him, probably trying to understand what just happened. "Thanks, Vanitas" whispered Aqua before following him. He cursed between his teeth and slammed the door.

Before leaving Monstropolis, he released even more Flood all over the place, and she didn't say a word.

* * *

"Okay, now, do you have any idea of how I can get rid of you?"

They were back to Vanitas's room, him sitting on the bed, her on the desk. He avoided speaking to her whenever there was someone around, because he really didn't want them to find out he was crazier than they thought.

"Well, maybe if you threw yourself in a pit of fire…" She started, before giggling. He sighed. "That's not helping. And that's definitely not something _she_ would have said."

"Maybe your heart is rubbing off on me?"

"I'd rather not. I only have only half of one, I'd rather not have it rubbing off on _anything_."

"Do you feel sad, having only half a heart?" She asked out of the blue. He frowned.

"Sad? Why would I…"

"I think I would be sad. Like, everyone is treating you like half a person. I've seen how they talk to you. They don't respect you. That would make me sad."

He stayed silent for a while. "I wouldn't say I'm sad. But yeah, that annoys me. Not for the reason that you think, though."

"Then for what reason?"

"They don't despise me for having _only_ half a heart. They despise me for _still_ having a half of it. Most of them gave up on their hearts to be here. A heart is regarded as a weakness to them. So in their eyes, I'm weaker than them."

"Well, if that doesn't make you sad, then it makes _me_ sad."

"Why would it? We're not friends."

She chuckled. "Wouldn't that be a very Aqua thing to do, to finally feel sorry for her opponent?" That made him chuckle too. "Yeah, I guess it would be."

They remained silent for a short moment. She was petting a flood, and he was staring at her. She finally noticed.

"What is it?"

"What if you were here for redemption?"

He expected her to look surprised. Instead, she smiled. "What makes you think that?"

"I can't quite explain it. It's just that… These last few days, I've started to think about it. Terra was the vessel. Ventus was my other half. But you… You were just a casualty. I fought you because Xehanort promised that would be how I would be complete again. And I hated you because…" He fell silent. She stood up, to come sit next to him.

"Why did you hate me? I don't remember being the one starting our war."

"Because I was _jealous_. Ventus got a home. Some friends. Because of you, he was happy. Because of you, he woke up with a smile on his face. Because of you, he didn't need me anymore."

She didn't answer, but she put her unreal hand on his shoulder, inviting him to keep talking.

"Meanwhile, what did I get? Pain. Torture. Punishments. Never a word of praise or approval. I was always angry, always scared, always sad. Always empty. Always alone. So I hated you, because you had given him what I wanted too. And I hated you, because I saw in your eyes, I saw in your freaking light that you would have given me the same thing if I had asked it. I knew that the second you'd see my face, you'd give me your bloody pity and kindness and I couldn't let you do that. Destroying you was much more easier."

She softly smiled. "So you attacked me because you feared I would give you what you always wanted? Well, guess what, here I am anyway."

He looked away, releasing some more Hareraisers. He clenched his fists and sighed.

"Look where this whole story took me. I trusted Xehanort who promised I'd get my heart back. I destroyed people's lives out of jealousy. I got destroyed on return. And here I am, still no heart, still working for the old creep, still hating every aspect of myself. And haunted by you, to make things worse. Just how stupid am I?" A Thornbite appeared. _Self-hate_. Aqua virtually ruffled his hair.

"I don't think you are stupid. I think you are lost. You have no real purpose, now, do you?"

A Flood appeared, and she chuckled. "Don't take it that way. My goal was to protect my friends. And yours was to get your heart back, right? But right now, what is your purpose? What do you want to do? What do you want to protect?"

"I want…" He thought about it. Had he really no purpose? He had nothing to protect, now, did he? And then suddenly, it was clear. He had something he wanted to protect.

"Ventus."

"Ventus?"

"I want to protect Ventus. He's my other half. He's… all I have left. So I can't let them have him. I will stay here, and make sure they never find him. I can still be reunited with him… can't I?"

She smiled. "If you are alive, then I am sure he is too."

He lied down, arms crossed under his head. "So this is settled, then. Tomorrow, I will start looking for him on my own."

"Where will you go?"

He carefully thought about it. "The Keyblade Graveyard. That's the last place I saw him. I know it's been ten years, but I could find something. A hint, anything."

This night, for the first time, he had no nightmare.

* * *

The minute they set foot on the dusty ground of the Keyblade Graveyard, Scrappers, Bruisers and Shoegazers escaped. Aqua frowned. "So you _are_ afraid of this place, aren't you?"

"Afraid? What makes you say that?"

She pointed at the Unversed. "I have observed you, and them, for two weeks non stop. You said they represented your emotions, right? Scrappers are your fear. Pure, genuine fear. They show up at every nightmare. The Shoegazers, they protect themselves when in danger. And the Bruisers… They are massive, they have long-range attacks. They are meant to protect you, to keep you from harm. Am I right?"

He couldn't tell whether or not she was right. He had never really thought of it before.

"Come. It's this way."

She chuckled softly. "Oh, I remember the way alright, don't you worry."

They walked for five minutes, until they reached the place of their final fight. And Vanitas froze right in his tracks.

"What is it? Oh." Aqua saw what he was seeing. That being her. She smiled. "Guess I didn't die, then."

"But how is it possible? She looks… Young."

Aqua - _the fake -_ shrugged. "No idea. All I know is that she is… Crying? You know what? You should go and see her."

"Why? What am I supposed to tell her? She killed me, remember? I'm not sure she'll be glad to see me."

"Just go already." She sighed and rolled her eyes, and he finally took a few steps closer. Turned out she wasn't crying (although she did sound like she was on the verge of it), but talking to… the wind?

* * *

"But I guess that deep down, I knew. You were born from Ventus's heart. You were just like him. You were a child. And yet, I destroyed you… No. I killed you. I think that's why you are haunting me."

He frowned. Who was she talking to?

"Look at that. Flowers." The fake one whispered, as if the real one could hear her. He didn't understand. She chuckled. "From the looks of it… For her, this is your grave, and she brought you flowers."

"Why?" He whispered to her, afraid the other one, the real one, would hear his voice.

"Mmmh… Did you hear what she said? I'd say she feels pretty bad for killing you, that's why." He furrowed his brows, but didn't say anything else.

"Talking with you helped me understand. When you said that Heartless carried a heart, and yet we found it _fun_ to destroy them. And when you said you never had a proper existence. I've never thought you might want an existence of your own, because I never thought of you as a _human being_."

That's when he really understood. She wasn't talking to the wind. She wasn't talking to a grave. She was talking to _someone_. After all, if she was haunting him while still being alive, it could pretty much be the other way around as well. So there was a fake, ghost Vanitas in front of her right now?

"That's why I came here. I've come to beg forgiveness. I have taken the life of someone who was just lost. Instead of helping him, I rejected him. I don't know if I can do anything to atone for that, I just…"

And that's when her voice broke, and she started sobbing for real. He knew he was usually the pitiful one, but at this moment, she looked really weak. It would be so easy to put her down for good. And yet, he didn't feel any pleasure in seeing her so broken over his 'death'. All he felt was _Mandrakes_.

"I think I've messed up your life quite a lot too. Let's call it even."

He walked closer to her, walking around her. The ghost laughed. "You know, you might want to hide your face. You told me you didn't want some pity upon her seeing your face." He cursed between his teeth and quickly summoned his helmet back, before picking up the flowers.

"However… Lilies? I would have rather had poppies. Or dandelions. Something that don't die that easily." He sat on the dusty ground with the grace of a Tank Toppler. And then, she finally lifted her sad, pitiful face to him, and somehow it broke him a little bit.

She was staring at him, agape. He still wanted to run away. Or to summon his keyblade and start a fight, rather than actually facing her. There was dust on his coat: a good distraction for him. He carefully dusted it until he found the courage to speak.

"Hello Aqua."

She slowly sat up, and with a shaking hand, tried to touch him. He didn't move. What if she was another ghost? What if he went through her? She looked ever so slightly older than the ghost, her face tired, harder. He had no idea why she still looked so young, but her eyes looked like she was a century old. She had been through a lot.

And then, her fingers reached his shoulder, and, as if she had receive a shock or something, she pulled her arm back right away, gasping. She didn't take her eyes off him, and he was glad he had the helmet on.

"Va-Vanitas? Is that really…"

"Yup. Safe and sound. I lived, bitch." Mmh, not his best phrasing. He had spent too much time with the Norts. The ghost crossed her arms. "Did you just call me _bitch_? To think I have been kind to you!" But her words sounded more amused than angry. But for now, the real Aqua mattered more. And he couldn't forget what she had just said.

"And I heard that cute and cheesy speech of yours… Did you mean it? Do you really want forgiveness?"

She went still, staring at him. He started to worry. What if she had never been talking about him? What if she had killed someone else, looking for someone else's forgiveness? How much of a fool was he really?

"More than anything."

He relaxed at her words, and scoffed. She was the fool one. Why would she want forgiveness, when he had done so much wrong to her in the first place?

"Remember all these nice things you told me yesterday? Now is your chance to tell them to the real one. So you'd better apologize."

He shot her a venomous glare "I know, I know, I will say it!" She smirked - so his heart _was_ rubbing off on her - and whispered "You just spoke out loud, you know." He gritted his teeth and ignored her.

"You see, I, uh… I think I'm looking for the same thing as you. Forgiveness."

"What?" So she wouldn't believe him, right? To be fair, he wouldn't have believed himself either. Who would trust a psycho like him? Anyone with a little bit of good sense would tell him to go rot somewhere.

"It's okay, just explain the situation." The ghost cheered, and he sighed.

"I've ruined your lives, because I had no other option. Because I've never been told right from wrong. Because the old fart told me that I would be free. But now… I guess I'm… Sorry? I've seen that trusting him didn't bring me anything good." He took a deep breath in. "Aqua, I'm sorry for all that I did. Do you think you can forgive me? And no matter your answer, know that I have long forgotten that sordid murder thing. I'm alive, after all, am I not?"

There. He said it. The ghost clapped her hands, ruining his moment, before he realised Aqua couldn't see her. He felt lighter just having said the words. Now all he wanted was to go back home before she had time to violently reject him.

Instead, she threw her arms around him. What was that? Was it a kind of attack? Was she going to choke him or something?

"Relax, it's just a hug. This is meant to show appreciation. Strong appreciation. This is usually a good sign."

"I've never been good at staying angry at someone anyway. We've both been pawns in a game we couldn't control, haven't we?"

"And now, you put your arms around her, just like she did. That's it, that way. See? You are a better human already."

He closed his eyes, almost regretting he had his helmet on, as this would probably have felt better without it. "I guess we have. And I think we still are."

And suddenly, the ghost's face was only a few centimeters from his, softly smiling.

"You have done well. Now, the fragment of heart that I am will go back to where I belong. I'd like to say it was fun, but it mostly wasn't. However, I hope that you will have learnt something."

She faded away, and he felt a strange coldness in his heart as she disappeared. Soon enough, though, a new warmth replaced it.

"I suppose that doesn't make us friends?" Her voice was so soft, and slightly muffled by the helmet, that he almost didn't hear her. How stupid was she? She wanted to be friend with him? That was a terrible idea. Sure, they were hugging in the middle of nowhere for a time that was way too long for strangers, or foes. But still.

"I don't think so. See the coat? I'm still part of the bad guys. But this time, my objective is the same as yours. I'm just going to make sure they _never_ find Ventus."

He hoped she would tell him that Ventus was already safe. But instead, she said :"Your other half."

He gasped, his half-heart missing a half-beat. She just said Ventus was _his_ half, not the other way around. He unconsciously hugged her a bit tighter, then hoped she wouldn't notice.

"That's the first time… Someone acknowledges him as a part of me, and not the opposite."

"I think you both are distinct persons. He's my friend, and you are my…"

"Enemy?"

"Rival."

Truth was, he was moved by her words. He felt Unversed he never knew he had stir in his chest. _Happiness. Relief. Care_. Of course, he couldn't let her know that. And if he stayed only a minute longer, these Unversed would burst out and ruin everything. So instead, he just chuckled, as if her words didn't mean much to her, and let go of her.

"That's fine with me. I have to go now. See you around… Rival. And don't you go haunting me again."

"Only if _you_ leave me alone, Rival."

Even though she couldn't see his face, his smile shone as bright as hers.

* * *

 _ **The End.  
**_

 _ **I hope you enjoyed this fic!**_

 _ **I'm going back to work next week, so I should get a normal life again. These past weeks were pretty... full.  
I'm going to a con this weekend, wearing a casual (Liverpepper) Roxas costume with SaphirActar as Sora, I'm so excited! Also, there's this KHUX event this weekend, I'm praying for a new KH3 trailer~**_


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